A Dance of Dragons
by tin2lo
Summary: A jealous Mako watches Korra practice a form of firebending he's never seen with General Iroh. It makes him question their history together as well as the true meaning of firebending. Slight Makorra.


**AN: Just a quick oneshot I wrote after re-watching "The Firebending Masters." Takes place in between seasons 1 and 2.**

 **Disclaimer: Avatar The Last Airbender and Legend of Korra belongs to Mike, Bryan, and Nickelodeon.**

Mako knew Korra was many things. She was fun, outgoing, and in Lin Beifong's words "tough as nails." She was the Avatar and the most extraordinary person he'd ever met. After their battle against Amon for Republic City, Mako knew he was in love with her. He had been there for her when she had escaped Tarloq and Amon, when they had to go into hiding, and when everyone thought she had lost her bending.

Mako was the first person to see her as a fully realized Avatar. He liked to believe he knew the woman he loved pretty well. Korra was many, many things…but a dancer wasn't one of them. Mako was so sure of that. Korra didn't strike him as the dancing type. Maybe Asami, but not Korra. Korra was the type to kick your butt for just suggesting she do something like that. Mako was more than sure about this. Which is why it was a shock to him when the first thing Korra had said upon seeing General Iroh at Air Temple Island was "come dance with me."

Bolin's jaw dropped, Asami's eyes widened, and Mako's fists clenched. He could feel the heat building up in his hands. Because General Iroh was also many things. He wasn't just the youngest general in the United Forces. He was brave, a skilled firebender, and (though Mako hated to admit it) good looking. Not to mention, he was Fire Nation royalty.

So when his girlfriend asked General Iroh to dance with her, to say Mako was jealous was an understatement. Why did he not know this about Korra? Why would she ask the general and not him, her _boyfriend?_

It was bad enough Asami _and_ Bolin were smitten with him after their time together destroying the airplanes. He didn't need this Fire prince making his girlfriend smitten with him as well.

Mako thought they were just going to train together. After getting her bending back, Korra was re-training herself in all the elements. A crash course to get rid of some of the rust. She did it following the cycle though. While they were in the South Pole still, she worked on her water and earthbending but decided to wait until her return to Air Temple Island to work on fire and airbending. It was actually amusing to see Korra beat Bolin at earthbending despite being blindfolded.

Mako figured it wasn't a big deal if she wanted to train with not only him but with General Iroh. Her natural opposite was fire so she probably needed to work extra hard to get that particular element back into shape. Why not spar against the general of the United Forces? But instead of sparring with him, Korra wanted to…dance?

He couldn't understand it. But he held his tongue and clenched his fists, letting the heat buildup in them. Everyone gathered around the training area to watch as Korra and Iroh stood in the middle. Iroh had stripped off his United Forces jacket which only angered Mako even more. _Why can't his royal highness dance with his clothes on?_ But still, Mako held his tongue.

Mako's anger was starting to get to him again that he almost didn't notice Korra and Iroh standing back to back taking deep breaths.

One more deep breath and the two of them began to move in synchronization. The same moves but on opposite sides. It wasn't much of a dance. It was more of a system of poses. They reached their last pose in which their fists almost touched but then turned to be back to back once more. They did the forms again but this time with fire thrown in. Everyone's eyes widened in understanding. This wasn't just a dance. Not really. This was a system of firebending forms like they've never seen before. Korra and Iroh did the form a couple more times before turning around to actually spar each other.

Mako turned to Tenzin standing next to him. "That was…wow…What was that exactly?"

Tenzin, without looking at him, answered. "That was an ancient firebending form dating back to the ancient Sun Warriors and early Fire Sages. The Dancing Dragon."

 _The Dancing Dragon. It made sense now._ "I've never heard of it before."

Tenzin sighed. "I'm not surprised. It's a technique almost completely lost in this day and age. For a long time during the Great War, even the true meaning of Firebending was lost."

"The true meaning of firebending?" Mako loved being a firebender but what he used it for was survival. He never really stopped to think of the history behind his skill.

Tenzin nodded. "Yes. Fire is life. It's energy. Not just destruction."

Mako looked away from him and thought about what Tenzin said. "I never thought of it like that." Mako looked to see Iroh and Korra still sparring.

Tenzin could see the look of contemplation on the young firebender's face. He could also see a slight hint of jealousy and Tenzin wasn't going to pretend to know why. "You know, the Avatar and the Firelord have had a long shared history."

 _Of course they have._ Was all Mako could think.

Tenzin continued. "For the past two of Korra's lifetimes the lives of the Avatar and the Firelord have intertwined." Mako just nodded. "The Dancing Dragon is not something Korra learned in this lifetime, but something she learned in a past life that she remembers. It was Fire Lord Zuko and Avatar Aang who learned this technique and the meaning of Firebending from the masters Ran and Shaw. And before it was Fire Lord Zuko and Avatar Aang, it was Fire Lord Sozin and Avatar Roku. General Iroh may not be Fire Lord yet, but he will be one day."

Mako was confused. "Why are you telling me this?"

"My father used to tell me that some friendships were so strong that they could even transcend lifetimes." Mako nodded in understanding. _Just like the Avatar and the Fire Lord._ "But love…love is different. Love is a form of energy that swirls all around us and is reborn in the form of new love."

Mako's eyes widened as he looked at the airbender, finally understanding the lesson he was trying to teach. Tenzin just smiled knowing his work was done. Both Mako and Tenzin looked up to see Iroh and Korra bowing to each other, having finished their spar.

Korra was smiling as she and Iroh made her way towards where Mako and Tenzin were standing. "What are you two talking about?"

Tenzin answered before Mako could. "Mako was just asking me about the history of firebending." Tenzin turned to Iroh who was wiping his sweat with a towel. "General, if you're not too busy, I'm sure Mako would love to learn the Dancing Dragon. You learned from Fire Lord Zuko himself, didn't you?"

Iroh smiled proudly. "I did. My grandfather spent years teaching me breathing techniques alone. But Avatar Korra tells me you're already a talented firebender." Mako blushed hearing about Korra's praises as the General bowed to him. "It would be my honor to teach you the ways of the dragon."

Mako smiled, feeling honored himself. He bowed back to the general. "The honor is mine, General Iroh."

Mako and Iroh stood up and faced each other. Somehow the jealousy Mako felt in his chest disappeared especially as he saw Korra smiling at him when he looked up. General Iroh may not have been as bad as he originally thought. Maybe Korra befriending him wasn't such a bad thing after all.

Tenzin was right. Friendship may transcend lifetimes, but love was something new each time. And in this lifetime, he was the man lucky enough to have the Avatar's heart.


End file.
